For Charles Bukowski, a typical writing day includes gambling, wine and Mahler.
Late in his life he said:
“Every day I’ll wake up around noon. Then I’ll go to the track and I’ll play the horses … Then I’ll come back and I’ll swim and … have dinner and I’ll go upstairs and I’ll sit at the computer and I’ll crack me a bottle [of wine] and I’ll listen to some Mahler or Sibelius and I’ll write, with this rhythm, like always.”
Needless to say, every writer’s process is different. My typical writing day doesn’t look anything like Charles Bukowski’s day. For instance I wake up early, and then I take a walk by the river. I am back home to write by about 9 and write until around 12:30. After lunch I do the business of writing–submissions, marketing, typing changes into the computer–and then I fix dinner.
On a typical writing day, I don’t play the horses or Mahler and if I cracked open a bottle of wine, I would probably fall asleep. My rhythm is a little different, but that doesn’t make it right or wrong, nor is Charles Bukowski’s, although it seems to have worked for him. We all do what we have to do to get the job done and no schedule is set in stone. (Forgive the cliches.) Sometimes I do things differently just to shake things up and sometimes deadlines blur the lines.
What about you? Do you have a set writing routine or a time when you feel most creative? What does your typical day look like?
Gosh, Susan, I only dabble in the writing department, mostly poetry, so I don’t have any kind of schedule per se. I seem to get most of my ideas when I am sleeping, so I keep a pad and paper by my bed so I don’t lose the thought. You keep a very busy schedule, good for you. I am not quite so dedicated. Getting old, I guess!
Mary
Dabbling counts, Mary. I think it’s smart of you to keep a pad and paper by your bed. My novel, The Secret Sense of Wildflower, might not exist if I hadn’t done that. It came to me in the middle of the night, too.
We are all the oldest we have ever been! 🙂 But I love your youthful comments!
All the best,
Susan
Can’t argue with his musical tastes. Debussy’s piano music also inspires me. It’s interesting how so many writers (and other creative types) rise at noon and work into the wee hours.
I am pretty much an “early bird”, even if I’ve been up late the night before. It’s just my inner clock. I like to see the first light of day. There is something, almost, sacred about it. (And this, from an avowed Atheist; Ha ha ) I meditate, practice my Reiki and Yoga. Do some stretching. Then, I eat a very large “breakfast”, slowly. Might even light a candle or two.
Many times, I awaken with poems and ideas for things to write, or music to play, swirling about in my head, and I have to write them down quickly while they are fresh in my mind. I have papers and scribblings all over, in neat little stacks. Music too. By early afternoon, I am ready for a siesta. My bio-rhythm is lowest in the afternoon. After dinner I love to take long walks. At this time again, the ideas come pouring in to me. That’s pretty much me in a nutshell.
Weird….eh? Trélys
Weird? I wish I had your biorhythms. The world does not live by mine.
Having a young family, my writing pattern is all over the place. If the kids chill out and watch a film at the weekend, I’ll open the laptop for an hour, but I mostly write when they are in bed (ignoring the husband and the state of my house).
The greatest gift anyone could give me would be a few days of open-ended space to write, with no distractions! No dinners to cook, no clothes to iron, no lunchboxes to prepare, no squabbles to sort out!
Hi Rebecca,
Oh, I so wish I could give you that gift of open-ended space to write! For years I was a single mom of two girls and stole moments while they were at the playground, at a play date, school or whatever presented itself. So I have a sense of your life.
If you can keep going in spite of all the busyness, you’ll be a very resilient writer.
Thanks for commenting!
All the best,
Susan
P.S. I also found that reading my girls really good children’s books was a way to study the craft of good writers. What works, what doesn’t work. It’s all good.